


Our Secret

by canthelpmyselves



Category: DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV), The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-28
Updated: 2018-03-28
Packaged: 2019-04-13 23:02:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,611
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14122743
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/canthelpmyselves/pseuds/canthelpmyselves
Summary: After dry spells, bad blind dates and a few surprisingly pleasant meetings, Barry and Mick start to grow closer.





	Our Secret

Mick knew that eventually it would all come to light. Secrets never stayed secret forever. Someone, somehow, always found out. Of course, he never expected them to be ‘fully exposed’ when they were exposed.

 

(TWELVE MONTHS EARLIER)

“Heatwave?”

“Flash.”

“Um, hi?”

“Hey.”

…  
….  
…..

“Soooooo, why are you sitting on the edge of a bridge?”

“Ain’t jumpin’, Kid, if that’s what you’re thinkin’.”

“Well, kinda,” the Flash said carefully. “You’re sitting on the railing of a bridge well known for it’s suicide rate.”

“I like the view,” Mick grumbled. “Cheers me up.”

The superhero slowly approached and sat a foot away from his enemy. He looked out over the river and skyline and nodded. “Hmm. It is rather nice.”

Mick hummed in agreement. He sipped the beer he had brought with him and glanced at the man beside him. “Gonna try and bust me?” he grumbled after a few minutes of silence. He was surprised by the confusion in the kid’s green eyes.

“For what?”

“I’m a thief, in case ya forgot,” he pointed out.

The Flash snorted and began swinging his legs. “Nah, I remember. But you haven’t stolen anything tonight.” He paused and stared at Mick closely. “Have you?”

He shook his head and sighed. “Nope. Might have been a better night if’n I had.”

The Flash stared at him with a hint of worry. “Um, are you sure you’re okay?”

Mick knew he should get up and leave. Or make the hero leave. Instead he took another drink and sighed. “Seven,” he mumbled. “Seven potential dates in the past 2 months that barely got past the introductions. Tonight’s date never even showed up. Or maybe they did, got a good look at me and left. Who knows?” He waited for the teasing or derision that he just knew was coming. Instead the Flash looked at him with surprise. Not the ‘eww’ kind of surprise, either. 

“Wow,” the hero mumbled. “If you can’t get a date, why am I even bothering to try?”

Mick looked at him curiously. “What’s that mean?” It didn’t sound like the kid was making fun of him. 

“Well,” he said, motioning toward Mick vaguely, “you’re tall, muscular, handsome and got the whole ‘bad boy’ thing going for you. Women like that, don’t they? I’m just a skinny nerd.”

Mick’s eyes were wide with surprise as the hero slumped beside him. “Men,” he managed to blurt out. The Flash looked up and Mick shrugged a little self-consciously. “I’m gay.” 

The criminal underworld wasn’t exactly progressive, so it wasn’t something he pointed out very often. He was lucky in that he was big enough and scary enough that most of the homophobia prevalent among old school criminals bypassed him. Plus he had Snart on his side. There were few people who would willingly piss off Snart.

The Flash shrugged. “Don’t guys like a bad boy, too?”

“I would think they like heroes more,” he said cautiously. “You don’t care I’m gay?”

The kid snorted, legs still swinging side to side. “I’m bi, myself. As for the hero thing, even if they did, it’s not like I can go around telling potential dates I’m the Flash. I’m pretty sure it says so in the rule book.”

“There’s a rule book for being a superhero?” Mick teased, finishing his beer and tossing the bottle into the river. The kid shot him a disapproving look before answering.

“I’m fairly certain there’s a manual somewhere. I’ve never read it, but the way Ol… um, the Arrow from Starling talks, there are definitely some rules I’m not following as closely as he would like.”

Mick grinned, enjoying the conversation. “Such as?”

“Cutting deals with rogues, for one,” The Flash grinned back. 

Mick felt a swirl of desire warm his belly and looked away. The last thing he needed was to get a crush on his own enemy. He didn’t fall easily, but when he did, he fell hard. The Flash was definitely his type, from what he had seen so far. Smart, kind, and funny were hard enough to resist. Throw in that delectable body and those wide expressive eyes, and he could easy be absolutely gone on the kid if he wasn’t careful. That smile of his was potent.

Mick cleared his throat and looked out over the city again. “So, you hit a dry spell, too?”

The Flash huffed and shrugged. “Going on a full year, now.” He blushed and looked away quickly. “I mean, I guess I could date Iris. She’s been hinting around that she’s interested, but it took me years to get over her and finally be okay with just being friends. Not sure I want to drag all that back up.”

“Why not, if she’s finally into you?” Mick asked.

The kid was quiet for a moment before looking over at him. “Because I think she’s just lonely. I’m convenient. She knows how I used to feel. Her fiancee died a year ago, and she’s tired of being alone, but not ready to get back into the dating scene. I wouldn’t just be the rebound, I’d be the stepping stone to getting her life back together.”

“That sucks,” Mick commiserated. 

The speedster shrugged calmly. “Not really. Like I said, I moved on. Unfortunately, she’s the only person interested in me, and I know it would be a disaster. So, dry spell,” he said wryly.

Mick reached into the small cooler by the railing and pulled out two beers. He silently handed one to the kid and popped the top off of his own. He clinked the two bottle necks together before taking a long pull of his. “May we both have better luck tomorrow,” he toasted.

He smiled slightly as the Flash grinned and popped the cap off with a nod. By the time the sun came up four more empty glass bottles rested at the bottom of the river and the two men were long gone, each one having gone in a different direction, more relaxed than when they had arrived.

 

(ELEVEN MONTHS EARLIER)

For once, Mick opted out of running a heist with the Rogues. He had a cough and fever and was in no shape to go with Snart, Lisa, Mardon and Scudder to Keystone. Instead he had dragged himself to the closest pharmacy to stock up on NyQuil, cough drops and tissues. He was about to approach the register when two twenty-somethings ran in, waving a handgun, and demanding money, cigarettes and drugs. 

Mick was just reaching for his heat gun when the air became electrified and the Flash zipped in. In the blink of an eye, the two would-be thieves were bound and gagged. Mick tensed as the hero spotted him. A second later his world spun violently. When he found himself on solid footing, he began coughing roughly.

A hand gently rubbed his back as he tried to catch his breath. When his lungs finally caught up and his vision cleared he looked up angrily at the hero. “Are you trying to kill me?” he growled.

The Flash shifted awkwardly from one foot to the other. “Um, sorry. There was a patrol car pulling into the parking lot. Figured you might not want to be there when they found the thieves.”

Mick’s jaw dropped as he straightened up. “You… helped me?”

Before the kid could answer, he was struck by another violent coughing fit. The Flash began patting his back again. Once the fit was over the kid took his hand and pulled him down a short hall. Halfway there, his legs began to buckle and his eyes began to roll up. The next thing Mick knew, he was stripped down to his boxers, tucked under a thick, familiar quilt and there was a medicine cup right in front of his face.

“Stop speeding around me!” he growled, eyes drifting shut. (Anyone who said it sounded like he was whining was getting a punch to the mouth.)

A soft hand laid on his forehead and he cracked one eye open to look up. He vaguely made out flyaway brown hair and those spectacular green eyes, but the rest was blurry. “Take the medicine, Mick,” The Flash urged gently. “You’re safe here.”

Mick swallowed the bitter liquid and let his head fall back on the pillow. Safe? Of course he was safe. The Flash was taking care of him, he thought sleepily.

When he woke up, he was feeling a lot better. No more fever and his cough was mostly gone. He was also in his own bed in safe house 4. Beside him was a note.

*Rory,  
There’s more NyQuil and cough drops in the kitchen, along with a pot of tea. You just have to heat it up. Make sure you drink it all, it’ll help with the nausea. Also, there’s some bath salts on the sink in the bathroom. They’ll help with the achy muscles. Just follow the instructions on the tag.  
Flash *

Mick vaguely remembered someone holding him up and helping him sip something warm and soothing. He had the impression that same someone had bathed away the clammy sweat on his upper body when his fever broke. He even remembered a warm body curled around him trying to stop his chills. 

He re-read the note with awe. The Flash had nursed him through his illness. Why? More importantly, what would he expect in return?

 

He didn’t want anything. In fact, he didn’t even hint about taking care of Mick when they faced off a week later. He bantered with Cold, blushed at Lisa’s teasing and managed to take back the paintings he and Bivolo were carrying. The only indication that the Flash gave of having known Mick was ever sick, was the slight brush of the kid’s ungloved hand over his forehead just before he swiped the Van Gogh out of Mick’s hands. It warmed him to know the kid was checking for a fever.

 

Lisa and Rathaway were scooting out the back door of the warehouse while Len and Mick held the Flash off. Len kept punning, and Mick was certain he saw the kid roll his eyes at least once. The Flash raced forward, knocking the cold gun out of Len’s hands and skittering across the warehouse floor. Mick sent a wide arc of fire toward the hero, who ducked behind a support beam and tried to catch his breath.

“Dammit, guys! Didn’t we just do this same thing last week at the museum?” the kid yelled. “Shouldn’t you be with the Legends or something? Aren’t you supposed to be heroes now?”

Len dove for his gun and managed to freeze the Flash’s leg to the beam. He stood and smirked, pushing his goggles down. “Ice try, Scarlet,” he purred, “but a thief is a thief is a thief.”

“Stupid puns,” the hero muttered.

The sound of sirens approaching signaled it was time to go. Len ran for the exit and Mick followed. He did paused for just a second to look back at the kid, who was busy breaking apart the ice holding him in place. He had to admit, seeing the Flash bent over, on display, his body heated up just a little (okay, a lot).

 

(TEN MONTHS EARLIER)

Mick grabbed the two six packs of beer from the fridge and stomped out of the safe house. He was seriously thinking of taking a vow of celibacy at this point. He trekked through the alley and across the train tracks to the small park and found a bench, sitting down to open the first beer.

“Rory?”

Mick groaned and dropped his head down, recognizing the voice. “Don’t even try it, Flash,” he warned angrily. “I ain’t in the mood to fight and I ain’t getting arrested tonight.” Not hearing a reply he looked up and stilled. A few feet away stood a young man. A very pretty young man. A very nervous, very pretty, very young man. 

Mick’s eyes slowly swept over him, taking in every detail. Dark brown hair with a bit of a poofiness to it, those incredible green eyes and red lips. Swan-like neck. A dark green dress shirt and black slacks did nothing to hid the runner’s body underneath. Why hadn’t he ever noticed how delicate the Flash’s hands were?

“Damn,” he muttered. “Fucking gorgeous.” A blush flooded the kid’s face immediately and he looked flustered. 

The hero slowly inched closer until he reached the bench and sat down on the other end. He clasped his hands in his lap and cleared his throat. “Um, bad night?” he asked warily.

Up close Mick could see he had freckles and couple of moles. His cologne was something spicy and did wicked things to his pulse rate. Needing a distraction he turned back to the beers and popped another open, holding it out to the Flash. 

“Fucking blind date,” he grumbled. “Only, I didn’t know it was a blind date. Was with the Legends. Sara and Len decided to spring it on me. Said I needed to get laid so I’d mellow out.” Mick turned to look at the hero again, eyes narrowed in annoyance. “A goddamn bodybuilder. Can you believe that shit? They thought I’d be interested in a guy who’s only thought in his head was what kinda protein shake he should drink.”

The kid snorted. “Gotcha beat. Caitlin set me up with her accountant. During tax season. As far as I know, he’s still at the restaurant explaining how to deduct my bus pass as a business expense.”

“Craig asked how many squats I can do.”

“Larry spent twelve minutes explaining the difference between tax evasion and tax fraud.”

“Craig offered to let me feel his muscles.”

“Larry wanted to see my W2s.”

Both of them were silent for a couple of seconds. Then the kid started to giggle softly. A heartbeat later Mick chuckled. Then they both burst out into loud laughter. By the time they regained control, they were leaning against one another for support. The kid wiped at his eyes and took a deep breath.

“Barry Allen.”

Mick was stunned. “You’re telling me your name?”

Barry shrugged and sipped his beer. “Surprised Snart never told you.” Barry paused for a second and glanced at him shyly. “I always thought you two were a couple.”

Mick grunted and gulped his beer. “Get that a lot. Len and me could never hook up. Too snarky for me and I’m too gruff for him. Mostly, we got the same taste in people. We both like ‘em pretty and smart.” Mick leaned back against the bench and smirked. “I think he’s got a thing for Sara, to be honest. I’m looking forward to him screwing up and her kicking his ass.”

Barry giggled again and shook his head. “It’ll be a pun.” Mick looked over at him and Barry’s grin grew. “He’ll use one too many and she’ll kick his ass.”

Mick chuckled and nodded. “Probably. He can’t seem to help himself.”

They sat there in silence for a few minutes before Mick glanced at Barry hesitantly. “You know, I kinda thought you and Len had something going on a few times.”

The kid choked and looked up with wide eyes. “Why?!”

Mick gave a shrug and looked at his beer bottle. “The teasing when you fight. Me, Lisa and Rathaway thought maybe you two were hooking up on the side.”

Barry’s jaw dropped and he turned a bright red. After several seconds he grimaced and looked away. “You aren’t the only ones,” he admitted. “I’ve gotten so many lectures from my team and family about how bad it is to sleep with the enemy. No matter how many times I tell them it’s never happened, they don’t believe me.”

Barry ran a hand through his hair and sighed. “I mean, it’s fun facing off with Snart. And the rest of you, too. I like his style, although his sense of humor sucks and I know you guys aren’t trying to actually kill me. I think of it more as practice runs than actual fights. But Snart and me? No way. Never, ever repeat what I’m about to say, but he’s cool. I like him. I actually kind of think of him as a friend. You know, without the hanging out or actual friend stuff. But as a boyfriend? Nuh uh. I couldn’t handle him calling me ‘Kid’ while we were in bed.”

Barry tilted his head as he continued, looking thoughtful. “To be honest, I like all of you. Lisa’s sweet and nice under the sarcasm. Hartley’s really smart. I even think Mardon’s a stand up guy when he isn’t trying to kill me or my family. And you? You’re awesome.”

Mick’s jaw dropped as he stared at Barry. “You think I’m awesome?”

Barry blushed again and looked down. “Well, yeah,” he said softly. “It’s nice talking to you. And you’re smarter than you pretend. And you’re pretty handsome,” he finished in a whisper.

Mick swallowed nervously and leaned a bit closer. “You know, that’s the second time you’ve said I’m handsome,” he pointed out softly.

Barry caught his bottom lip between his teeth and bit down. He looked up and took a deep breath. “Well,” he mumbled, “you are.”

Mick reached out and placed his hand on the back of Barry’s neck, turning his body sideways so he was facing Barry. “Come here,” he demanded gruffly.

Barry’s eyes dilated slightly and he leaned closer. Mick took a second to appreciate the view before gently kissing the younger man. Feeling Barry relax into him and return the kiss made his blood heat up. One minute they were kissing softly. The next, he was pulling Barry across his lap, their arms winding around one another tightly as things heated up. 

 

Mick rolled his eyes as he poured himself a cup of coffee. He pointedly ignored the others in the room as Lisa continued to prod him. “Look,” he growled, “I went for a walk. Drank some beers. Came home.” Made out with the Flash and liked it, he thought to himself.

Sara snorted around the rim of her coffee cup. “And those hickies just magically appeared out of nowhere?”

Mick bit back a grin and shrugged as he plopped down on the recliner. He could feel Len’s eyes on his neck, knew that his long-time friend loved solving a mystery. He was going to have to be extra careful if he wanted to keep this relationship a secret. No one would understand. Not the Rogues, not Team Flash, not the Legends. 

And yet, Barry wanted to see him again. A proper date. Dinner at the kid’s apartment, followed by a movie of Mick’s choice. Nothing too fancy or awkward, just a casual evening to get to know one another better. Maybe even some more great kissing. 

“Admit it,” Lisa teased. “You and Craig hit it off better than you want us to think. Don’t think for one minute we didn’t notice he left right after you, last night. You two aren’t as sneaky as you think.”

Mick snorted and drank half his coffee in one gulp. “Whatever,” he grumbled. He was perfectly fine with them thinking it was the muscle bound ape. Perfect cover for who he was really seeing. Len was still watching him a little too closely, the wheels in his head obviously spinning. Mick was going to have to keep an eye out for Len. He was too nosy.

 

“Bartholomew Henry Allen!” Caitlin hissed.

Barry jumped six inches off the treadmill and went crashing back into the cardboard boxes. Cisco and Harry came over to help him up as he rubbed the back of his head. When he was steady he looked at Caitlin with alarm. “What?”

She glared at him fiercely, hands on her hips. “Where were you last night?”

“I had a date,” he reminded her. “Your friend, the accountant.”

Caitlin stood straight, shaking her head. “Larry said you left early.”

Barry blushed and rubbed the back of his neck. “Well, yeah,” he admitted.

“You ditched him!” she accused.

Barry groaned. “He was boring!”

“Who was boring?” asked Iris as she walked into the room with a travel carrier full of coffee cups from Jitters.

“Barry’s date,” Cisco answered, grabbing the cup with his name scrawled across it.

Iris tensed and looked at Barry. “You had a date?”

Caitlin nodded, frowning at Barry. “With a friend of mine. Barry ditched him halfway through.”

“He wanted to do my taxes,” Barry pointed out.

“I, um, didn’t realize you were dating,” Iris mumbled.

Barry shifted awkwardly and shrugged. “It was a blind date,” he said. “It didn’t work out.”

Caitlin sniffled with annoyance. “Larry is a sweet guy.”

“Boring guy,” Barry muttered under his breath. Caitlin shot him a glare before spinning on her heels and walking out of the room.

Iris forced a smile on her face. “Hey, why not come over tonight and we’ll watch cheesy movies and eat ice cream. You can tell me all about it.”

Barry shook his head quickly. “Um, can’t. I’ve got plans.” Everyone looked at him curiously and he scrambled to find an alibi that didn’t involve the words ‘date’ and ‘Mick Rory’. “I’m...running to Star,” he said weakly. “To see Felicity. And Oliver. Cause, you know, I haven’t done that recently. Yep. Just going to visit Team Arrow.” Barry backed out of the room with as bright of a grin as he could muster. “Sooo, um, better get moving. To Star. To see my friends.”

Barry raced home in seconds and quickly grabbed his laptop, sending a Skype request to Felicity. Luckily she answered within minutes.

“Hi, Barry!” she said brightly. 

Barry sat down and gave her a pleading look. “If anyone asks, I’m visiting you and Ollie tonight!” he said quickly.

A second later Oliver appeared on the screen behind his girlfriend. “And we’re lying why?” he asked sternly.

Barry pinched the bridge of his nose and sucked in a shaky breath. “Please don’t kill me,” he whined. He opened his eyes and looked at them both. “I have a date tonight and I don’t want anyone here knowing who it’s with. Not yet, anyway. So I told Iris and the others that I was visiting you guys tonight.”

Ollie’s expression hardened. “Barry,” he said in a warning voice.

Barry’s shoulders slumped. He had never been able to hold out against Ollie’s ‘Arrow’ voice. “Mick Rory,” he whispered. “I’m having dinner with Mick Rory.” He swallowed quickly. “I know he’s a Rogue, and a thief, but he’s also with the Legends now, and we’ve talked a few times, just casual stuff, and last night we ran into one another after really, and I mean REALLY, bad blind dates and got to talking and he’s actually a pretty nice guy and he kisses so good and I like him and I think he likes me too and I really want to see if this is a thing but I know that no one will understand and pleasedontkillmeorhim.”

Felicity and Ollie stared at Barry for a full minute before Ollie rolled his eyes and moved away from the camera. “Fine,” he growled.

Felicity smiled widely and giggled. “Your secret is safe with us,” she promised.

Barry’s jaw dropped. “Y-you aren’t mad?” he asked with wonder.

Off screen he heard Ollie. “You’re a good judge of character, Barry. As long as he doesn’t hurt you, we’re good.”

Felicity gave him her fiercest frown, which just looked more like a constipated puppy than anything scary. “But if he does, I’m sending Ollie and Thea after him,” she warned.

Barry grinned back at her. “Thanks, guys. You don’t even know how much I appreciate this!”

“If it works out, we expect to officially meet him,” Ollie called out.

“Deal!” Barry laughed before signing off. He took a moment to calm down before heading to the shower. He needed to get dinner ready and then get dressed. Mick would be there in two hours.

 

It was actually a lot easier to spend time together than they thought it would be. At least once a week they had dinner together at Barry’s apartment, unless Mick was gone with the Legends. They had actual dates to the movies, restaurants or took walks in the park whenever they could. They talked every day, even aboard the Waverider, thanks to the Waverider’s Gideon being linked to the version Barry had smuggled out of STAR Labs. 

Len and Lisa were still suspicious of Mick’s frequent excursions, but Mick simply said he was with a prostitute. NO ONE wanted details. Iris stopped hinting around that she was interested in dating and just straight forward asked Barry out. Barry told him all about the incredibly awkward talk they had. Having Barry reject her, no matter how gently, made Iris pull away. Barry said he had seen very little of her since then. He was saddened by this, since she had been his best friend for so long, but it was also a bit of a relief not to be in that situation anymore. 

Mick would like to say they took things slowly and eased into a relationship, but that’s not what happened. They didn’t even finish their lasagna that first night before they were kissing. Halfway through their first date they were in Barry’s bed. They ate the dessert for breakfast.

Mick had never had such a gentle relationship. Normally it took a long time for someone to relax enough for them to become emotionally intimate with him. Even then, most of the people he attracted were rough and tumble types. Not Barry. He was passionate but attentive. Slow kisses, caring touches, and tender words were exchanged. He made Mick feel desirable. Even during their more ‘vigorous’ nights, he never doubted that Barry treasured him. Mick had fallen hard for his boyfriend. Even better, he knew, without a doubt, that Barry loved him, too, because Barry had said so just four months into the relationship. 

They had just left Oliver and Felicity at their hotel after dinner and were walking through the same park they first kissed in when Barry suddenly stopped walking and looked at Mick shyly. 

“What’s wrong?” he had asked. 

Barry braced himself and took Mick’s hands in his. “I love you,” he said softly.

Mick had been shocked for all of five seconds before pulling Barry into his arms tightly. “I love you, too,” he had whispered fervently. 

Of course, they should have expected things to blow up in their faces. They had gotten too comfortable. Too relaxed. Which is why they were now standing in the middle of the lab, surrounded by angry friends and family. Oh, and Joe West had a gun pointed at Barry. Why Barry? Because he was currently shielding Mick from the detective.

 

(ONE HOUR EARLIER)

Mick had been on the time ship, helping to fix a time aberration in 1918. When they finally headed back to 2017, they discovered a problem with the ship’s shields and Sara thought it would be a good idea to ask Cisco to help Jax fix it. They usually tried to return to as near the same time that they left as they could, but with the ship damaged, it wasn’t possible this time. 

It had been over a month since they had been together. It was risky and stupid, but they hadn’t been apart for that long since they started dating. Needless to say, as soon as they possibly could, he and Barry snuck away to one of the lower storage rooms. 

Within seconds of the door shutting Barry had them both undressed. Mick loved it when he used his speed. The rush of air, the spike of adrenaline, even the slight burn of friction all combined to set his blood on fire. He had Barry pinned to the wall, those long legs wrapped tight around his waist and their mouths sealed together when the door opened and Ray, Cisco and Sara spotted them.

So, now they were back in the cortex, in rumpled clothes, with most of their friends and family shouting at them, or each other. Mick slid his hands around Barry’s waist and pulled his back against his chest. Barry immediately relaxed into his embrace. Suddenly there was a loud whirl as the cold gun powered up and everyone shut up. 

Len stepped into the center of the room and snatched the gun from West almost as fast as Barry could have. “Everyone chill out!” he demanded.

West made a grab for his gun, but Barry zipped forward, grabbed Len and zipped back into Mick’s arms. West’s jaw dropped as he stared at his foster son. “Barry!”

Barry released Len, moving him to stand beside Mick. “Okay,” he said in a strained voice. “So, Mick and I are dating.”

“Are you crazy?!” Iris demanded. “HIM?”

“Hey!” Mick growled.

Barry reached down and linked his hands with Mick’s. “Stop it, everyone,” the speedster said calmly. “I’m in love with Mick. And he loves me.”

“How?” demanded Caitlin, eyeing Mick with suspicion. “Barry, he’s a villain!”

“No, he’s a legend,” Barry argued. “Just like Len or Ray or Sara or Professor Stein.” Len snorted and Barry shot him a glare. “Not helping,” he mumbled. 

Mick huffed and looked out at the group. “It ain’t nobody’s business.”

“Of course it is!” West snapped. “You’re not good enough for him!”

“Joe, please,” Barry pleaded. “Don’t do this.”

“Barry, this is crazy!” Iris yelled. “He’s using you!”

Barry shook his head. “Mick wouldn’t do that. Iris, we’ve been together almost a year. If he was going to use me, he would have done it a long time ago.”

“A year?” Len asked with narrowed eyes. “I’m guessing more like ten months.”

“Too damn smart for your own good,” Mick chuckled. “Ten months and four days.”

“So, Barry’s a hooker, huh?” Len teased.

Barry rolled his eyes and gave Len a grin. “Kept you from asking for details, didn’t it?”

Len gave a surprised laugh. “Don’t think I won’t be asking for them now, Scarlet.”

“Excuse me!” Iris said shrilly. “This isn’t a laughing matter!”

“You can’t date a criminal!” Joe said loudly.

Sara stepped forward, arms crossed as she studied Mick and Barry. “How did this happen?” she asked.

Barry sighed, but it was Mick who answered. “We got to talking one night. Nothing special. Just two guys commiserating over being lonely. Ran into each other a few more times. Then, one night we both had bad blind dates and sort of bumped into one another again. Got to talking. Then kissing. Had dinner the next night. Been together ever since.”

Barry looked around the room. “We didn’t tell any of you because we knew you’d react like this.”

“How serious can it be if you kept it a secret from everyone?” demanded Caitlin.

“Not everyone,” Barry admitted. “Ollie and Felicity know.”

“So does Hartley,” Mick said. “I asked him to pull some strings and get us tickets to a play a few months back.”

“Rathaway knew before me?” Len sounded outraged.

“He doesn’t pun,” Barry smirked. 

“Heathen,” Len teased.

“I can’t believe this!” Joe shouted.

Barry took a deep breath and stepped out of the shelter of Mick’s arms. “Okay,” he said firmly. “Here’s the deal. Mick and I are dating. We’re a couple. That’s not going to change just because some of you object.” Cisco started to open his mouth but Barry hurried on. “And I swear to god, if anyone questions us, argues with us or even makes a snide comment, I will go into explicit detail about every single thing we’ve ever done together.” Barry pointed a finger at the group and narrowed his eyes. “EXPLICIT DETAIL! With lots of adjectives! And maybe hand puppets.”

Mick leaned in close to Len, gripped his partner’s shoulder and whispered. “He vibrates.”

Len made a choking sound, his eyes sweeping over Barry quickly. Barry rolled his eyes and grabbed Mick’s hand. “Now, if you’ll excuse us, I haven’t seen my boyfriend in way too long.”

Seconds later Mick found himself in Barry’s apartment. Barry turned to hug him, but jumped in surprise to find Len slumped over gasping for breath, Mick’s hand still gripping his shoulder. Barry rubbed the back of his head. “Um, sorry?”

Len tried to glare, but it was a weak effort. “I hate that.”

Mick chuckled. “I love it.”

“You would,” Len sneered. He finally got his stomach to settle and stood up straight. He looked around the apartment before glancing at Barry. “I hope this wasn’t an invitation. You’re cute, Scarlet, but I have no interest in seeing Mick’s ass.”

Barry smirked and waved toward the door. “Well, I do, so go away.”

Len chuckled and opened the door. He paused before stepping outside, turning to face them. “Just so you know, I’m glad for you both. Doesn’t mean I’m gonna go easy on you, Scarlet, but I don’t object either.”

Mick locked the door after Len stepped into the hallway. He turned and pulled Barry to him gently. “So, how bad’s it gonna get, you think?”

Barry wrapped his arms around Mick’s neck and sighed. “They’ll eventually settle down. Until then, we’ll just have to deal with whatever happens. As long as we’re together, nothing else matters.”

Mick smiled and kissed Barry softly. “I’ve missed you,” he whispered.

Barry grinned into the kiss. “Let’s go to bed, Mick.”

Mick picked him up and walked down the hall toward the bedroom. “Love you, Barry.”

“Love you, too, Mick.”

**Author's Note:**

> This is one of the first things I wrote for this fandom that I liked enough to share. Hopefully anyone reading it will like it, as well.


End file.
